Interview: Michele Springall – A Support Worker’s Perspective

In late 2014 The Blind Spot interviewed Ealing resident and support worker Michele Springall. Michele works for the Middlesex Association for the Blind, a charity providing services to blind, partially sighted and deaf-blind people in nine London Boroughs.

In a wide ranging interview, Michele covers many topics, from her own experience as a support worker to her view on the state of care for blind people in light of cuts to funding and the 2014 Care Act. Citing examples of the specialised support that’s needed for someone who is blind or partially-sighted, Michele depicts the current situation as one that needs to improve, yet could get even worse if lessons are not learned.

Jump to Topic:0:00 Introduction0:27 Changes to social care2:12 A support worker’s role5:20 Public understanding vs the reality6:56 Examples of support8:15 Social services and councils9:29 Care Act10:41 What visual impaired people want and need14:45 The assessment process16:29 Lack of understanding of visual impairment – a hidden disability17:49 Lessons have not been learned